A hiker writing for The Trek has decided to end her Colorado Trail attempt at Leadville this year, and her reasoning is a useful reality check for anyone dreaming of the same route.
Her plan was to finish the full trail in five and a half weeks. By day 16, it was clear the mileage wasn't adding up, and the resupply logistics ahead — longer gaps between towns, more planning — were only going to get harder. So instead of grinding out a doomed schedule, she's slowing down: forty miles over five days, booked a night at Janet's Cabin, and lined up an Amtrak ride home to Seattle from Grand Junction. The takeaway she shares bluntly: next time she'll spend far more time acclimatising to the altitude before setting off.
Day 16 itself was a short one — 5.6 miles from Frisco to Miners Creek — and it captured everything that makes the Colorado Trail deceptively tough. She started at 10:21 after taking the bus out of Frisco, climbed on a paved recreation path before turning uphill, and immediately felt the weight of an over-packed food bag. Shade was scarce, afternoon thunderstorms rolled in fast enough that she had to shelter in the forest until a cell passed, and she was glad not to be on an exposed ridgeline when it did.
The day did improve. The second, shorter climb was gentler and more forested, she passed a couple just starting out and a Denver hiker named Caroline planning a full thru-hike, and she had camp pitched by 3pm, just ahead of more rain. Next up: a 4-mile climb to around 12,000 feet.
Why should a regular traveller care? Because the Colorado Trail is increasingly on the radar for fit hikers looking for a big American objective, and stories like this one cut through the Instagram version. Frisco makes a great base if you want to sample the trail without committing — the town has buses, resupply shops, and easy access to the route. Janet's Cabin, a reservation-only hut right on the trail, offers a taste of Colorado's famous 10th Mountain hut system for hikers who want a roof and a real bed mid-trek. And the storm pattern described here is not bad luck; July and August afternoons in the Colorado high country reliably bring thunder, so the standard advice is to be over passes by noon and pitch camp early.
The hiker plans to return in a year or three to finish the trail — proof that a partial hike can still be a good one. For most people, that's exactly the right model: hike a section, enjoy it, come back later.
